NOWIN RACIAL JUSTICE

For Missouri Moms, A Past Drug Conviction Means No Food Aid, Ever

Missouri is one of 10 states that still ban people, mainly women, with felony drug convictions from ever receiving food stamps. Overall, according to the Sentencing Project, an estimated 180,000 women and their children, primarily families of color, are disproportionately affected by this little-known holdover from Clinton-era welfare reform. Now for the first time Missouri’s legislature is looking at loosening if not lifting the lifetime ban. Even with bipartisan support however, it’s unclear whether the bill will make it through.

The majority of the other states still riding hard for this War on Drugs-era punishment are located in the South.

Read this online at http://colorlines.com/archives/2014/04/for_missouri_moms_a_past_drug_conviction_means_no_food_aid_ever.html

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